Firefighters have been battling more than 500 wildfires which broke out Wednesday and Thursday, spreading quickly due to strong winds and affecting the regions of Palermo, Agrigento, Trapani and Messina.

Sicily President Rosario Crocetta said he believed organized crime was behind the inferno.

“How do you explain a blazing fire in Cefalù last night (Wednesday), when the temperature was 24 degrees [Celsius, 75 Fahrenheit] ?” he told La Republica. “Of course, the heat and wind do the rest. I do not have proof, but I suspect criminals were responsible because they always affect the most valuable areas around Palermo."